A Minute to Lose; an Eternity to Gain

Finally we reached our old hiding spot, an old campground near an abandoned cabin. We dropped the fire wood we had into a pile, and lit a campfire.

“Oof!” I breathed as I sank into the hard bench by the fire. The fire was lit, the food was out, and the time was right.

“Ok! It’s time for a scary story!” Julie gasped.

“Why?” Roy questioned.

“To set the mood! Duh!” I interrupted.

“Well, since you know everything, you can tell the story!” Roy thundered.

“Sure,” I replied slowly. I raked my brain for a word to say, but I came up with nothing. “It was late a…” I was interrupted by a loud crack. I couldn’t tell what the sound was, but I knew it was close. We looked at each other, frightened for a moment, and Roy plasters a smirk on his face.

“You two are freaking out over nothing!” he laughs weakly. “At the very worst its gonna be a rabid raccoon or something. Plus! You’ve got me. I’ll keep my girls safe.”

“It’s funny how he thinks he has the brave genes, when he really has the wimpy ones.”

Julie whispered to me. We snickered.

“I heard that! Now I’m the oldest here…”

“By three minutes!!” Roy didn’t even have a chance to finish his sentence before Julie would interrupt him with the whole “three minute excuse.” You see we’re triplets, I’m the youngest, Julie’s the second youngest, and Roy’s the oldest.

“I’m still technically the oldest; that means you have to listen to me!”

“I can do what I want!”

Snap! Julie and I grab at each other, and looked to Roy for emotional support. Fortunately, out jumped a rabbit, medium in size, and completely harmless. A sense of relief flows over me.

“See you guys. It’s just a bunny! You two were freaking out over nothing.” He manages to blurt out in between snorts of laughter.

“Alright then, let’s just tell our stories.” I interrupted impatiently. I knew the sound was made by a bunny, but I just didn’t feel right; I didn’t feel at ease. I felt like I was being watched by someone, not something.

“Liz? What are you thinking about? What’s wrong?” Julie inquired.

“Oh nothing!” I answered quickly.

“Are you gonna tell the story?”

“Yeah, yeah. Um well…here goes. This is a true story…well a dream at least. One night, maybe five years ago, I was having a dream. It seemed like I woke up from the dream, and I saw something. It appeared to be like a ghost. No figure, no face, nothing. Just a blob. I knew it was a blob, but it seemed to look at me. The thing studied me—a predator stalking its prey. By that time I was sprinting, down the hall into Mom and Dad’s bedroom. The thing seemed to be following me with ease. The thing stalked me, like a criminal following its victim. When I reached my destination, I leaped up into their bed and hid under the covers. The covers entwined me in its arms, and told me things to calm me down. Like five minutes later, I looked from under the covers and saw the thing. It seemed like it was searching for me, the good thing was that it couldn’t find me. When it gave up, it left the same way it came in. After that I felt extremely scared and exhausted, I passed out.”

“The story doesn’t seem that scary!!” Roy retorted in defiance.

“The scary thing was when I woke up. When I woke up, I was in Mom and Dad’s bedroom. I don’t sleep walk, I didn’t fall asleep there. It had to be real, right?”

“Oh it was real alright. That dream you had there was not a dream, it was real. You young lady have escaped the angel of death. Quite a feat,” he answered.

“Who are you? Show yourself? We are armed. I’ve already called the police, and we don’t live far from here. If we yell loud enough they will be able to hear us,” Roy babbled bravely.

“Oh no, they are not dragging me back to that place. Prison is a nightmare. Miracle I escaped.”

“You’d better leave before they get here,” Julie interrupted. She had been stunned since I was telling my story.

“Yeah, and we can kill you if we have to,” Roy protested.

“Oh yeah, how about I kill you first,” he thunders. He reached for Roy quickly and quietly. He grabbed his chin, lifted it, and slit his windpipe. It happened all so fast. All it took was a second. It took a second to end someone’s life, and jail for the person who did it.

“No!” Julie screamed. She reached for him; she draped herself over Roy.

“How could you do this?” I bellowed. “He was trying to protect us. Protect us from YOU!!!” Guilt flashed across his eyes. As the event set in, sirens were clear in the distance. The guy grabbed me by the arm.

“Your coming with me.” he said to me. “And if your sister tries to save you, you both will end up like your little friend.”

“Julie, don’t come after me! He is gonna kill both of us if you do,” I cried.

“Ok, ok,” we cried. I grabbed for Julie and she grabbed me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him walk slowly into the woods.

I stare across the street behind police tape. Anger flares as I see the man who killed my brother; the man that has killed somebody else and has still gotten away with his life. As tears begin to sting my eyes, I turn my back and flee. I flee, leaving behind that trace of my presence. I flee, leaving behind the memory of Roy’s death fresh in my mind. I still feel the remorse as I run. I push myself for more speed, hoping for what most people call a sign. Perspiration rolls down my spine as I sprint down the sidewalk, going nowhere. My lungs begin to burn, and I have to stop. I’ve ran forever, and I still feel the pain. I guess I’ll just have to live that way. The best thing to do is cope with my remorse, and remember the best of times rather the worst. I have lost a minute of my time, but in that time I have gained a second of knowledge that will help me for an eternity.

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